In "Prospects," Emerson implores his readers to trust in Reason as a means of approaching universal truth. He writes of matutina cognitio — morning knowledge — as the knowledge of God, as opposed to vespertina cognitio — evening knowledge, or the knowledge of man. (This concept of morning knowledge is echoed in Thoreau's writings in the heightened awareness that Thoreau presents in connection with the morning hours. It is a spiritual, enhanced, spontaneous insight into higher truth.) In "Prospects," Emerson puts forward examples of intuition at work — the "traditions of miracles," the life of Jesus, transforming action based on principle (such as the abolition of slavery), the "miracles of enthusiasm, as those . . . of Swedenborg, Hohenlohe, and the Shakers," "animal magnetism" (hypnosis), "prayer; eloquence; self-healing; and the wisdom of children." These examples make evident the "instantaneous in-streaming causing power" that constitutes Reason.
Emerson explores at length the difference between Understanding and Reason. Both serve to instruct man. However, Understanding is tied to matter and leads to common sense rather than to the broadest vision. Emerson grants that as man advances in his grasp of natural laws, he comes closer to understanding the laws of creation. But Reason is essential to transport man out of the material world into the spiritual. In "Idealism," Emerson asserts that intuition works against acceptance of concrete reality as ultimate reality, thereby promoting spiritualization.
In "Spirit," Emerson presents the notion of the mystical and intuitively understood "universal essence" (a potent, comprehensive life force) which, expressed in man through nature's agency, confers tremendous power:
Who can set bounds to the possibilities of man? Once inhale the upper air, being admitted to behold the absolute natures of justice and truth, and we learn that man has access to the entire mind of the Creator, is himself the creator in the finite.
Reason provides perception of God's creation and a direct link with God, and reinforces the divine within man. It bestows on man an exalted status in the world. And man's identification with God, his elevation through vision, underlies Emerson's sense of nature as a tool for human development. Man is second only to God in the universal scheme. The material world exists for him.
